Manhunt: Police search for California murder suspect mistakenly released from jail
03/11/2021 12:26 pm PST
LOS ANGELES (TCD) --
A man accused of murder mistakenly released from jail in Southern California Tuesday remained at large on Thursday.
The Associated Press reported 23-year-old Steven Manzo was charged last year with fatally shooting a man in Long Beach in 2018.
Booking records show Manzo was released from county jail at 2:12 p.m. Tuesday, the L.A. Times reports. Manzo was charged with murder in March 2020 and had been incarcerated since. The case prosecutor dismissed the case, then refiled it Monday, due to a reported procedural issue over a delay in Manzo's preliminary hearing.
Law enforcement agencies launched a massive manhunt for Manzo, which shut down portions of the 101 Freeway in Los Angeles during Tuesday afternoon's rush hour.
The Los Angeles County Sheriff's Office, the Long Beach Police Department, and the Los Angeles District Attorney's Office all shifted blame for the mistaken release.
There have been numerous inquiries and inferences regarding the “erroneous release” of a murder suspect yesterday from jail. The release was unequivocally not due to any "mistake" or "error" by @LASDHQ personnel and further questions should be directed to @LBPD and @LADAOffice. pic.twitter.com/R4J4s0Zf4t
— LA County Sheriffs (@LASDHQ) March 10, 2021 @LASDHQ
Long Beach Police said “we can certainly confirm the error was not on our end” and referred questions to the district attorney’s office.
The Los Angeles County Superior Court said in a statement they were "thoroughly reviewing the situation."
MORE:
